Meet Raphael Exton-Pery, co-owner of JollyGood Bar & Diner in Collingwood, Melbourne. For Raphael and his partner, co-owner Meg McAulay, what started as a way to stay busy during the pandemic quickly evolved into a family-run food destination, beloved for its welcoming atmosphere and elevated diner experience.
Before it became a Collingwood favourite, JollyGood started as a sandwich pop-up. Since then, it has now become a full-service restaurant where customers feel like ‘guests’ and can swing by for late-night steak frites, oysters and martinis or a fried chicken sandwich with their mates. It’s a place that feels like home, whether you’re in for a quick bite or settling in for a long, boozy brunch.
From the story behind JollyGood’s beginnings to the secret sauce that keeps their customers coming back, this exclusive interview is filled with real talk and plenty of inspiration for anyone looking to start or grow their small business. Here’s our chat with Raphael.
How did the business start?
JollyGood started during the COVID lockdown. We were all on downtime from cooking in restaurants and I wanted to fill my time by opening a pop-up sandwich shop. The success of that led to doing more pop-ups, and then once I went back to working in restaurants, my partner and I decided that it was time for us to just do our own thing and we opened JollyGood as a full-time pop up in another venue.
The name came from the COVID era where everyone was a bit down in the dumps and I wanted an experience that was fun and joyful. That name has continued on and it’s expanded from just being a sandwich place. We’re now managing our dream, which is a diner restaurant experience where you can come in and eat late night, you can come for a cocktail with your friends, you can come for a steak, you can come for a burger, a nice glass of wine, you can bring your family in or you can come in with a group of mates, we’re kind of covering all demographics. We wanted it to be an inviting place for everyone to come.
You’re now an institution in Collingwood. What’s drawing customers in and how do you get them coming back?
A big thing for us is that rather than treating people as customers, we want them to be guests here. We want everyone to have a nice time and feel comfortable. It’s that same experience of just a “jolly good time.”
As for our marketing and social media presence, it’s all about consistency and authenticity. Developing a clear brand and tone, knowing an excellent photographer and graphic designer also helps attract crowds.
What’s one thing you wish you’d known at the start of your journey as a small business owner?
One thing we definitely wish we’d known at the start of the journey was the challenge of brand awareness when pivoting. We started as a sandwich pop-up and transitioning to a full restaurant created a hurdle, getting the word out that we are now a full-service restaurant rather than just that sandwich pop-up we were for the first 2 years.
For someone who’s got an idea in the food industry, or perhaps a restaurant idea, what are your top tips to bring that idea to life?
I think what makes a good idea for a business is one, having a very clear image of where and what you want your business to be even if you initially can’t be exactly that, at least you have your vision. Even when we were a sandwich pop-up, we knew eventually we wanted to be a restaurant. We’ll always offer sandwiches but that’s always kind of going to be the side thing, we want to offer the full experience and I think opening a new business is just having a very clear idea, image and goal of where you want to be.
I’d say my top tips would be, one is be humble, ask everyone you can about the ins and outs of running a business, because no matter what, no matter how clear your image is, there’s always gonna be setbacks. One of the good things with Melbourne especially is that the hospitality world has a great little community and everyone is always willing to answer questions and help. Everyone wants other businesses to succeed.
Another tip that I would definitely give is to just start. We started as a pop-up, but whether you’re starting as a food truck or starting doing events for other people, start offering, even if you’re catering a friend’s event.
VistaPrint believes in supporting small businesses just like JollyGood. As a customer of VistaPrint, what are your favourite products and how do you use them?
When I first started the JollyGood brand, branding was a huge thing for me. Our original branding was actually inspired by the original Pepsi logo. I wanted something that could be iconic, long-term, a brand that’s recognisable for everybody. In our store, we like to feature that prominent branding so we use VistaPrint’s branded takeaway cups, bags and stickers. We also like the signage and aprons.
To learn more about JollyGood and their offerings, visit their website at www.jollygoodmelbourne.com/. You can also check out their social at http://instagram.com/jollygood_melbourne/.
Ready to bring your vision to life? VistaPrint is here to help with the marketing and design solutions that you need to stand out.
Explore our range of custom marketing materials, merch and more designed to help your small business thrive. For daily inspiration and helpful tips, follow us on social at @vistaprintaustralia.
